UN rights chief warns of deepening repression in Iran, region amid war
UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Wednesday that repression of civic space and freedom of expression has sharply intensified in Iran and across the Middle East since US and Israeli attacks began.
“We are witnessing a sharp securitisation of civic space across the region, with severe restrictions imposed by governments on people exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.
Türk said arrests and crackdowns had had a chilling effect, with estimates indicating more than 2,300 people detained in Iran on national security-related charges since the start of the conflict.
“This is outrageous. As if the pain and suffering brought on by the war is not enough, some Iranians are being arbitrarily rounded up, jailed, prosecuted without due process, and in some cases then even executed by their own Government,” he said.
He added that executions must be halted immediately and warned that Iran’s nationwide internet blackout, now in its fifth week, and reports of intimidation and arbitrary detention were worsening the situation.
